Master of Science in Sustainability, Entrepreneurship and Design with Placement (Thick - Sandwich)

at Brunel University London United Kingdom

What is the social and cultural impact of media communications in today’s world? How do communication and information media actually work and what are their importance to our society?

This course enjoys a very close relationship with sociology at Brunel and combines the theoretical elements of sociology with the practical elements of media studies. You’ll focus on all aspects of society: its personal, social and cultural dimensions.

Studying communications and media at Brunel is not just limited to the classroom. You’ll have the opportunity to broaden your mind by going on field trips and joining film sessions, where you’ll learn about cameras lighting and editing. You’ll be able to attend optional company visits, for example IMG studios, where you’ll receive a tour of the studios.

On this course you’ll have the chance to make your own films in groups. You’ll develop your skills in our media services suite which has industry-standard facilities. You’ll be taught about the software Final Cut Pro and how to use different types of Canon cameras. You’ll experiment with different lighting styles and practise sound editing techniques. This practical work will equip you with the skills you’ll need for a media related career or for working in the field of production.

You’ll also be able to take your learning outside the classroom – on field trips and company visits. Previous students have toured the IMG studious right here in Uxbridge.

If you choose to go on a placement, you’ll benefit form Brunel’s contacts and location. Examples of recent student placements have been in advertising, digital marketing and public relations in organisations such as Cartoon Network, IMG Media, Sweet Images and the Walt Disney Company.

Films can evoke a multitude of emotions as we watch them on the big screens, but do you often wonder what goes into creating the masterpieces that can stick with you for a long time? Turn your creative curiosity into a career you’re passionate about by studying Brunel’s Film Production BA.

Your degree will give you a thorough understanding of film by combining the production with the theory of visual digital media. Delve into practical film and video-making, scriptwriting, filming and editing, whilst honing your critical analysis and research skills to develop a comprehensive understanding of how the film and TV industries work.

The course will allow you to bring your ideas, thoughts and inspirations to the screen. By using the fantastic editing suites with up-to-date production software including Avid with accredited training facilities for Final Cut Pro 10, you will be able to bring your creations to life.

As well as enhancing your learning by attending screenings at the British Film Institute, the Institute of Contemporary Arts and other cinemas across the capital, you will also be eligible to enter our annual Brunel University Film Festival (BUFF) with categories including Best Fiction, Best Non-Fiction and Best Overall Film. This will allow you to put what you have learnt into practice and will give you the opportunity to showcase your talent.

Learn with confidence knowing that you are taught by some of the best film academics in the UK. Not only are they experts in the industry, but they have published work in the field so some of the books on your reading list may be written by those teaching you.

Gain an insight into life after your studies by putting your learning into practice by opting for a one-year work placement. You will graduate with valuable work experience to enhance your employment prospects and will be able to develop an understanding the working world within the film industry. We have excellent links with a wide range of notable external organisations, so you will have the opportunity to apply for high quality placements across London.

Previous students have undertaken placement at many prestigious venues including The Pinewood Group, Fremantle Media, Objective Productions, WaterAid and BalletBoyz.

You will graduate with the confidence to be a creative and imaginative cultural producer with solid knowledge of film culture and practical experience which will put you in good stead for your future career.

The Brunel Economics BSc combines a thorough grounding in economic theory with the practical skills needed to apply that knowledge to business, industrial, financial or government environments.

You’ll learn how markets operate from microeconomic and macroeconomic perspectives and how trade and business priorities shape the ways societies function.  Special attention will be given to financial marketins and the banking sector, as well as an introduction to accounting.

Further, you’ll develop the analytical, quantitative, statistical and computing skills used to predict how societies, governments, businesses and households will respond to events, trends and market behaviour.

You will study statistics and econometrics and develop skills in data presentation, analysis and modelling.  This training will use analytical packages widely used by business and financial institutions such as SAS, EViews, Bloomberg, Reuters and STATA.

We offer two study options. You can choose three years full-time or four years full-time with a one-year professional placement between years two and three that will give you hands-on experience in a real-life working environment.

You can tailor the final year of your course to specialise in an area of particular interest.

Our economics undergraduate degree is accredited by ACCA and CIMA, and graduates will receive exemptions from professional papers should they wish to continue their study to become a chartered accountant.

The analytical, quantitative and transferable skills you’ll gain from your Brunel degree are highly valued by employers and will prepare you for a wide range of career and postgraduate study options in the areas of economics, business and finance.

Mathematics is a fundamental subject that is critical to our understanding of the world. Through the study of mathematics you’ll advance your problem solving skills, develop your reasoning and increase your analytical thinking. This is why mathematics forms a basis to so many careers. Yes – it is a discipline in its own right, but it is also the thinking behind countless commercial, industrial and technological activities. Mathematical models underpin engineering, the applied sciences, computing and many aspects of management today.

Follow the four-year ‘Professional Placement’ degree programme and you‘ll benefit from our extensive experience in helping students to find well-paid work placements with blue-chip companies. Our sandwich students find that their mathematical and transferable skills are in demand in many sectors, both in the UK and abroad.

Areas recently offering placements include: accountancy, aviation, banking, defence, finance, insurance, IT (software development, network management and design), management (public and private sector), marketing and telecommunications.

The Financial Mathematics BSc covers the application of mathematical methods to financial problems so if you’re looking to work in the fast-moving world of finance or commerce then this is the course for you. Two thirds of the course content focuses on developing your mathematical knowledge and skills. The rest of the course covers financial markets, corporate investment and finance.

This programme will meet the educational requirements of the Chartered Mathematician designation, awarded by the Institute of Mathematics and its Applications, when it is followed by subsequent training and experience in employment to obtain equivalent competences to those specified by the Quality Assurance Agency (QAA) for taught master's degrees.

Learn what role the media plays in shaping our society and influencing peoples’ thoughts and behaviours by studying our exciting Sociology (Media) BSc.  

By adding media studies to your study of sociology, you’ll be able to explore and specialise in areas such as the social impact of new media, the internet and other information and communications technologies, media discourse, media policy and regulation.

The first year is designed to offer you a solid base in theoretical and methodological innovations in sociology and media. You will explore the similarities and differences in the methodologies used in sociology, media, and communications. The focus of study is upon all aspects of societal relations: it’s personal, social and cultural dimensions.

As you progress through the course, you will be able to choose modules you are interested in to actively shape and apply your learning to the issues you wish to interrogate. In your third year, you’ll work on a dissertation focusing on an area of interest of your choice. Your dissertation can be a theoretical or practical dissertation, so you can work to your own strengths.

Depending on the modules you choose, you may have the option go on fieldtrips where you will be able to apply your learning to current issues and broaden your theoretical imagination. Previous fieldtrips have included: Barbican; British Board of Film Classification; London Migration Museum; Museum of Comedy; Museum of London; regeneration areas (e.g. Spitalfields, Smithfield); and the Victoria and Albert Museum.

As you’ll be taught and supported by academics who are not only experts in their field but are actively engaged in research, you’ll develop skills that can be applied from the classroom to the workplace. They know the industry inside out, so you know you are learning from experienced professionals who will bring their unique insights into the classroom and will ensure your learning is up-to-date.

Gain an insight into life after your studies by putting your learning into practice by opting for a one-year work placement or two short placements for six months at a time. You will graduate with valuable work experience to enhance your employment prospects and will be able to develop an understanding the working world. We have excellent links with a wide range of notable external organisations, so you will have the opportunity to apply for high quality placements across London.

Some of our sociology and media students have undertaken placements in a variety of companies including the political research unit at the Conservative Party Campaign HQ, the Ministry of Justice, the Home Office, the Prince’s Trust, the Crime Statistics Unit at the Home Office, Citizens Advice Bureau and the Department of Work and Pensions.

This is a broad-based degree which will enable and encourage you to specialise in areas which particularly fascinate you. As a graduate of this dynamic degree, you will leave us with various transferable skills that are key to the contemporary employment market. 

The Brunel Automotive Engineering BEng gives students with a passion for motor vehicles the specialised expertise they need to become professional engineers in the fast-moving automotive industry.

Along with a solid grounding in the fundamentals of mechanical engineering, including maths, engineering science and design, you’ll gain an in-depth knowledge of the technical workings of current and future automotive systems.  

You’ll study all aspects of automotive development and manufacture from vehicle design and performance to engine and transmission systems to materials, structures and safety.

You’ll also get hands-on practice troubleshooting engineering problems that inevitably arise during the construction and testing processes.

Your education will profit, too, by your access to the work done at our Centre for Advanced Powertrain and Fuels (CAPF). One of the largest and most active engine research groups in the UK, CAPF focuses on minimising pollutant emissions and improving fuel efficiency while maintaining performance levels.

Throughout your studies you’ll have use of our modern, state-of-the-art laboratory facilities, which comprise our motorsport workshop, and 24-hour access to industry standard specialist software for engineering design at dedicated computer clusters.

Our automotive engineering BEng course is accredited by the Institution of Mechanical Engineers (IMechE). We offer two study options. You can choose three years full-time or four years full-time with a one-year professional placement that will allow to put what you’ve learned to use in real-world situations.

If you start on the full-time course, you can transfer to the professional development option, which includes the placement, at any time before the end of Level 2.

In the rapidly evolving automotive industry, demand for engineers with the technical and managerial skills to excel is on the rise. Your Brunel BEng will give you these and equip you to play leading roles in industry and public service.

Our Advanced Engineering Design MSc degree is described as ‘the doorway to industry’. It is for high-calibre, ambitious engineering or science graduates who wish to gain expertise in developing complex, multidisciplinary engineering design.

The focus of the course is to provide you with advanced theory and skills to give you the essential expert knowledge needed for a career as an advanced designer, a design team leader or a researcher in innovative engineering design working in a computer assisted environment.

You will learn how to design products requiring embedded intelligence and comprehensive engineering analysis, and will be taught by a team of highly regarded academics who will give you a thorough grounding in engineering design.

Throughout your postgraduate engineering degree, you’ll have access to well-equipped design studios and computers for your exclusive use, and will benefit from the latest computer aided engineering software packages.

The Design Experience project gives you experience of the whole design process in an industrial environment – from initial concept to final design and manufacture, and presentations, seminars, discussions and guest speakers from industry make this a special learning experience.  

Part of your course will also involve group projects, furthering your ability to work in a team. Recent group projects have included the design of electric vehicles, and the design of smart jigs and fixtures. 

We run regular industry liaison events and this is your chance not only to showcase your innovative engineering design projects, but also network with key engineering and technology professionals.

Brunel’s Advanced Engineering Design MSc degree is accredited by the Institution of Mechanical Engineers (IMechE) and the Institution of Engineering and Technology (IET). This means your degree will put you on course to gain Chartered Engineer (CEng) status in the UK. It can be studied either full-time over one year, or part-time over two years.

Psychology in Sport, Health and Exercise is an area of growing interest, particularly in the world of professional sport. Through studying the link between the mind and the body, we can understand things like motivation and determination, and the effect that physical activity has on the brain.

This course is jointly delivered by the Divisions of Psychology and Sport, Health and Exercise Sciences. It is accredited by the British Psychological Society.

The Division of Psychology offers a firm foundation of learning including cognitive psychology, developmental psychology, and biological psychology. Quantitive and qualitative research methods are taught to support experiments you may carry out as research for your dissertation.

The Division of Sport, Health and Exercise Sciences will cover the fundamentals of sports psychology, and how to apply research knowledge to real-world situations. You will learn about experiences you may encounter as an applied psychology practitioner in both sport and exercise contexts.

As an accredited course, should you graduate with a 2:2 grade or higher, you will be eligible to apply for graduate membership of the British Psychological Society. Membership will be key if you choose to pursue postgraduate training. It’s also a pre-requisite of entry to all accredited Stage 2 and Doctoral programmes needed to become a chartered psychologist – be it in Sport and Exercise or otherwise.

The Entrepreneurship and Innovation BSc has been specifically created to help you put learning into action while you study by creating your own start-up business. 

Through a series of specialist modules in your second and third year (including your final year project), you will develop entrepreneurial skills and a nimble approach to business and innovation. You’ll gain confidence in your acumen and become quick to recognise and evaluate new business opportunities while calculating risk. The hands-on, practice-based learning of the course is key to this. You’ll create, run and grow a real-life enterprise as part of a group consisting of up to five students. By learning through doing, you’ll be able to apply theory very early on in the degree course to solve social and economic problems.

Along the way, you’ll learn from academics and receive support from professional business mentors who will help you to get the most out of your degree while developing your start-up. There are lots of resources available to you that can help you shape your degree into what you want it to be:

• The Brunel Innovation Hub offers expert advice and funding on student start-ups
• Through the Co-Innovate programme, you can opt to collaborate with an SME and help them solve a real business problem as part of your final year project
• You can choose to take a work placement in your third year (find out more on our work placement year page) or focus on developing your start-up
• We make sure that you have access to a variety of activities and events to challenge your self-starter mentality including the Mayor's Entrepreneur Competition

Before you get there though, your first year will be an introduction to general business and management through six compulsory modules that will provide you with a good understanding of theory and practice. The emphasis will be on developing your commercial awareness and preparation for new business creation, as well as for a work placement if you have opted to take one (you can opt to use your placement year to develop your enterprise too).

Who has political power? Why do they have it? To whom are they accountable? Is violent protest ever justified? If these questions evoke a response in you and raise more questions in turn, politics is the degree for you.

Politics is an exciting and dynamic subject, simulating debate and offering insight into how the ever-changing world around us works. It’s also a degree that can demonstrate your intellectual acumen and understanding of world affairs, which will be an asset in many fields of work.

The broad-based nature of the course at Brunel means you will be studying a wide breadth of modules from British politics to US foreign policy and political change. But you’ll not only be learning about politics – you’ll be analysing politics using the tools of political science to help deepen your understanding and critical thinking.

Opt for a placement year and you'll gain work experience that is highly valued by employers. Brunel students have secured placements in the Environmental Audit Committee, the House of Commons, Directorate of Gender Affairs, HM Treasury and the Competition Commission, to name only a few.

You can also opt to take part of your degree abroad in one of our partner universities in Europe, or participate in an exchange programme to China or the USA to study politics in a different part of the world whilst experiencing a new culture.

Brunel is a dynamic university choice for your politics course. You’ll be taught by politics experts who are often called on to comment on radio and television. The Brunel campus has hosted the filming of BBC’s Question Time and is a political hub during local and national elections.

Brunel politics graduates enter diverse careers. Many of our former students go into politics and the civil service and some are currently at GCHQ and military intelligence. Others work in the public and private sector like the NHS, international banks, business consultancy, law, NGOs and the media. Whichever route you chose, a politics degree with Brunel will set you up for a successful future.